Jada Pinkett Smith

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Jada Pinkett Smith (born Jada Koren Pinkett on September 18, 1971) is an American actress and singer. She was born to Robson Pinkett Jr. and Adrienne Banfield in Baltimore, Maryland. Her father was a contractor and her mother was a nurse. They divorced after only a few months of marriage. She majored in theatre at the Baltimore School for the Arts, where she met fellow classmate Tupac Shakur with whom she developed a close friendship. In the documentary Tupac: Resurrection, Shakur says, "Jada is my heart. She will be my friend for my whole life." Also in this documentary, Smith calls Shakur "one of my best friends. He was like a brother. it was beyond friendship for us. The type of relationship we had, you only get that once in a lifetime." The two remained close friends until Shakur's death in 1996. After graduating from the Baltimore School for the Arts, Smith then spent a year at the North Carolina School of the Arts before dropping out to pursue her career in acting. In December 2006, she donated $1 million to the Baltimore School For the Arts, in memory of Tupac.

Smith is also a prominent member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the oldest historically black collegiate sorority in the United States.

Her big break came in 1991 when she was cast in the part of college freshman Lena James on the NBC television sitcom A Different World, a spin-off of The Cosby Show. She made her feature film debut two years later in Menace II Society (1993). She did not gain widespread recognition, however, until her role opposite Eddie Murphy in the remake of The Nutty Professor (1996). In addition to being in front of the camera, she has spent time behind it, directing music videos. She has also created "Maja," a line of women's T-shirts and dresses that are mostly sold through small catalogs.

Pinkett-Smith married rapper/actor Will Smith on December 31, 1997, and together they have a son, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (b. July 8, 1998); and a daughter, Willow Camille Reign Smith (b. October 31, 2000). She is also stepmother to Smith's son from a previous marriage, Willard "Trey" Smith III (b. 1992).

Jada is also currently involved as the vocalist in a Alternative metal band called Wicked Wisdom, which released a self-titled debut album on February 21, 2006. The band also toured Ozzfest in the summer of 2005 as part of the second stage lineup.